Church welcomes new shared diversity
AMID song, cheers and tears the St Aidan’s Anglican Church welcomed black lay ministers to its altar on Sunday, the first time in its 135-year history.
The move is being seen as a precursor to more racial integration of churches, which have largely maintained their demographics through the ages.
St Aidan’s parish, located near the heart of the Durban CBD alongside the hospital that bears its name, has been home to mostly Indian congregants since its establishment in 1883.
When the Rev Canon Vernon Hammond was installed as rector earlier this year, he followed a long line of Indian priests at the helm, although he took over from Rev Alan Miller, who was seconded to the church for a short period.
Until now, there have been no black clergy.
Durban University of Technology students Siyanda Cele, 20, and Londa Nxumalo, 22, took their place as lay ministers alongside Leon Govender – and church elder Dr Betty Govinden, a renowned author, academic and researcher.
Govinden, a lay minster at the church for three decades, said St Aidan’s was named after a 7th century travelling Irish bishop who had preached “good news to both friend and stranger, kings and slaves, bringing them into a new shared humanity”.
“How lovely to see that example of inclusivity practised for generations, through St Aidan’s mission here with its hospital, schools and community work, and to see this legacy continuing in new ways in the present time.
“These young lay ministers already come with training from their home parishes and are now embraced in the inner city far from their homes,” said Govinden.
Hammond said the parish had been originally earmarked to minister to the Indian Anglican community in the CBD.
“So today (Sunday) marks a special day not only because we celebrate the ministry of the St Aidan’s mission over the past 135 years, but also as we celebrate the inclusive, diverse and multicultural community that we minister to.
“This is not to say that we have not been inclusive over the past 25 years, but to signal to our history that we are warm, inclusive, diverse and welcoming to all,” he explained. “We share together ministry to our community when we feed and clothe the homeless and hungry. We share in the lives of our growing student community by being available and open to them when we provide a safe space for them to express their love for God. We carry on the tradition of service and sacrifice of our patron saint, St Aidan who was called to seek justice for all and to bring to the church’s attention, the needs of God’s people.”
Cele, a second year internal auditing student, grew up in a small village near Empangeni. “My parents passed on so my grandmother got me baptised in the Anglican church and made me who I am today,” he said.
“St Aidan’s is an ocean of love with kind people that make it easy to get into various activities of the church.”
Cele and Nxumalo, an information and communications technology student from near KwaNongoma, had only previously worshipped in isiZulu back home.
“For me it was the first time I saw Christian Indians, so this was new to me,” Nxumalo laughed. “I did want to worship in other languages so it was good to start in English. This emphasised indeed that Jesus is the God of all nations and races.”
He said he looked forward to experiencing serving God in a different community. “It’s a blessing.”